USS Arizona Memorial

A visit to the USS Arizona memorial is best done early. There are a lot of people trying to get in: 4,000 daily. When you arrive, you line up, and the line can be long. When it's your turn, you are given a little card telling you when your tour will begin. For me, this was three hours later. There are three things you can do during the wait: be bored out of your mind, see the Bowfin submarine, or visit the USS Missouri or Mighty Mo. The Bowfin submarine is interesting because you can see what it was like to live in a submarine. This one was launched in 1942 and sank 44 enemy ships! The USS Missouri is impressive and it was my choice. It's amazing to stand on this proud battleship on its giant teak deck and look up at the massive guns. Imagine what those it was approaching must have felt! The USS Missouri is a good complement to your USS Arizona tour because, while the war in the Pacific began with the USS Arizona, it ended with the USS Missouri: this is where the Japanese signed their surrender. The USS Missouri weighs 100 million pounds and has an especially frightening appearance!

Once it's time for your USS Arizona tour, you are ready! The memorial is only accessible by boat so the US navy ferries you across. At the memorial you'll have about 15 minutes to look around. The memorial is built right over the sunken ship, the USS Arizona. You can see the outlines quite clearly. A few exhibits detail the horrible events of that fateful day when 1,177 young men died after an armor-piercing bomb was dropped from a Japanese plane and the USS Arizona sank in nine minutes. Three hundred and thirty-five men escaped, but the others were not so lucky. You can see their names engraved on a huge marble wall. At that moment, you feel the reality of Pearl Harbor, something you don't feel unless you visit. Twenty-one other vessels were damaged that day, and in total 2400 people died.
If you like military history, visit the army museum near the Hale Koa Hotel in Waikiki. Go for a wonderful swim in the ocean after!

Directions

USS Arizona is located at 1 Arizona Memorial Place, Honolulu HI 96818, From Waikiki, take the H1 West. Exit at 15A, Arizona Memorial/ Stadium. Stay on Kamehameha Hwy West (Hwy 99), until you turn left on Arizona Memorial Place/ Kalaloa. There will be signs.
Parking can be difficult so come early! Note the map has the visitor center marked, which is where you go. A boat will take you to the memorial.
Open daily 7:30am-3pm.
Entry is free. Tickets can't be obtained in advance, and since this is the most popular visitor attraction on the island, you could be twiddling your thumbs in line for 3 hours to get tickets, so arrive before 8am!
USS Arizona Memorial, call (808) 422-3399.

Click on map for interactive view